NOVA bomb: Difference between revisions

It was intended for the NOVA Bomb to be used in space against the [[Covenant]] [[Fleet]] during the [[Battle of Reach]]. In the novel they were left on [[Reach]] and "repurposed" by [[Admiral Whitcomb]]. His reasoning was that "Either the Covenant pack those bombs up and take them home for study, a possibility that I hope to God happens. A bomb like that could crack their homeworld in two. Or, the bombs stay here and they'll stop the Covenant on Reach..."<ref>''[[Halo: First Strike]]'', page 180</ref>

The only documented triggering of a NOVA Bomb occurred when it was accidentally detonated by a group of [[Huragok]]. The [[Huragok]], through their curiosity and frenzied obsession, fixed the circuitry despite [[Kwassass|a Grunt's]] attempts to stop them. This resulted in its detonation. The resulting explosion occurred between a Covenant outpost planet [[Joyous Exultation]] and its moon, [[Malhiem]], scorching a quarter of the planet and shattering its nearby moon.  The resulting winds on Joyous Exultation flattened cities and spawned tidal waves.  Every ship within the NOVA Bomb's range boiled and vaporized in an instant.<ref>''[[Halo: Ghosts of Onyx]]'', page 244</ref> This was actually extremely unfortunate as the [[Elites]], led by [[Imperial Admiral]] [[Xytan 'Jar Wattinree]] could have shattered the [[Brute]] fleet, thus effectively destroying the Covenant. This could have turned the tide of the war for both the [[UNSC]] and the [[Covenant Separatists]]. The NOVA Bomb explosion severely damaged three-quarters of the fleet that was there, totaling over 300 ships. Only eighteen Destroyers, two Cruisers, one Carrier and the Flagship ''[[Incorruptible]]'' escaped the NOVA Bomb explosion due to a [[Slipspace]] jump en masse just seconds prior to the explosion. The novel described the explosion as though " a small star erupted between Joyous Exultation and its moon."

In [[Ghosts of Onyx]], [[Cortana]] requests that the UNSC High Command launch a NOVA Bomb around [[Delta Halo]] and [[High Charity]] to stop the spread of the [[Flood]] and destroy the Covenant Holy Capital. However, this request was not granted likely due to the low number of nuclear warheads left and their need to protect the inner colonies. High Charity was not bombed and landed on the Ark. It is also possible that this request was granted, but that High Charity went into [[Slipspace]] before the warhead could even be launched. This last possibility is highly unlikely because a nuclear warhead is very easily spotted when transitioning from a Slipspace jump.